I have now had 3 cycles with failed fertilisation: 2 were IVF and the last one was ICSI with AOA. Each time, there were only 2 mature eggs retrieved due to very low AMH.
* In the first IVF cycle, the eggs degenerated.
* In the second one, one egg out of 2 fertilised but abnormally (4 pro nucleus, probably several sperm entered at the same time).
* In the ICSI cycle, the eggs were mature and healthy but neither of them fertilised.
My partner sperm is good quality on all metrics.
I was on the short protocol (“cetrotide”) for all but I managed to create embryos with that protocol before.
My clinic cannot explain why fertilisation stopped working and why there was no success on ICSI with good sperm. Did anyone have a similar experience or any idea of why it failed? What to do differently next time?
I take all the possible supplements (dhea,q10, melatonin, folic acid, cit D, etc) already. My partner sperm had perfect parameters for all cycles.
We know it can work as we created embryos with IVF before the lockdown with the same protocol (same dosage of meds).
The only difference I had is that I was taking prednisolone before the lockdown but I don’t think that helps fertilisation?
Can you share any advice/top or ideas?
Has anyone been through total fertilisation failure with ICSI?
N.B: Please don’t suggest donor eggs.
Xx
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Lilly12255
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Hello lovely, I’ve been through a similar experience. Out of 5 rounds, only 4 eggs were retrieved, only one ever made it to day 3, it was low grade but we transferred anyway, it didn’t work. Like yours, my hubby’s sperm was absolutely fine, described as excellent by the consultant. I arranged two meetings with the head embryologist which I found really helpful. They are the ones observing the whole process & I needed to hear the detail of exactly what was happening with our sperm & eggs. She was Brillant & explained all the detail that the consultant avoided. I have low AMH, so my egg numbers are low. At the first meeting, after our first failed cycle using short protocol, she explained my one egg had thickened zone pelluicuda, a sign of poor quality which prevents sperm to penetrate so we moved to ICSI. I didn’t have any success again until the 5th cycle. Four follicles produced 3 eggs using long protocol. One mature & 2 immature. At our next meeting, the embryologist explained that our mature egg failed to fertilise with ICSI, no explanation for this, other than bad luck. One of the immature eggs, matured overnight & fertilised. However, at the first stage of division, known as cleave, it started to go wrong & fragmentation occurred. Another sign of poor quality. She explained when fragmentation happens this early on, at the very first step of division, it is not good news & unlikely to go on to be a viable embryo. Like you I took so many supplements, including DHEA as suggested by the consultant and under the guidance of a nutritionally trained professional.... I’m sure I must have rattled! I also did acupuncture & all of this might have helped a little as there were some minor improvements over time. Hard to know if this was due to supplements or different protocols. It is heart breaking & the whole experience destroyed me mentally & emotionally. There are two costs to fertility treatment, our mental health & financial cost. Our bodies are surprisingly resilient & can deal with a hell of a lot. It’s more about finding the balance between how much you can cope with mentally & how much money you have for achieving your dream. For me throwing money at less than a 5% chance of success seemed pointless so we went with alternative options. Mainly because emotionally/mentally I was suffering & I just wanted to be pregnant as soon as I could. We are all different & there are ladies who have gone on to have success with their own eggs with low AMH. Only you can decide where that balance point is for you. I just want to tell you I know the pain but never give up. Achieving your dream the way you choose is worth the pain & heartache. Big hugs Xx
I saw a massive difference after taking supplements, I went from 4 eggs to 30 eggs in an egg collection basically. You might want to look at the exact supplement brands which you take (this makes a huge difference) and dosages. I can give you the contact of my fertility nutritionist, she also recommended other supplements which are not on your list e.g. PQQ.
Apologies for the confusion, I thought you were asking about the brands from all my supplements. My PQQ is from Life Extension indeed, I used to take 4 a day!
I didn’t have total fertilisation failure but I did have very low fertilisation rates - if ICSI is supposed to give a fertilisation rate of 90% then mine was less than 30% (14 eggs per cycle). They Also had high fragmentation and abnormal cell division and low quality on day 3
For me the only thing which made a difference was changing to natural modified IVF - personally in your situation and with such low numbers of eggs anyway I’d try a cycle of natural IVF and see what quality of egg your body would produce anyway without all the drugs? For me less drugs meant much higher quality. Changing to natural modified increased my fertilisation rate to 100% and top quality embryos
We also didn’t want to go down the donor egg route x
Buserelin for down regulation. Then 375iu gonal f for 8 days then 300 gonal f with 75iu menopur for 2 days then they reduced it significantly 150iu total as was risk of ohss as I had so many follicles. Even with low amh. I had egg collection on day 12 x
Hey, so sorry to hear about this. I’ve had a similar experience in that on my 2nd round they collected 19 eggs, used ICSI and only 1 fertilized abnormally and had to be destroyed. From the research I did protocol has an impact on egg quality so is worth looking at. I used the same protocol for the 2nd cycle as my first when I got 3 Day 5 blastocysts but they were poor quality (2 failed to implant and the 3rd didn’t survive the thaw). I had natural modified but then moved onto long protocol and have had a much better response. Have a look into the best protocol for you based on your circumstances and ask lots of questions!! Good luck xx
Yes that’s the protocol we used when it failed and the 3 embryos from the first round were no good (also natural modified). I know friends who’ve used it and have their babies as a result but others it’s not worked for. I’m not sure if there is a way of knowing if it’ll work or not so unfortunately I think you just need to try different things xx
Hi Lilly, I have found myself in a similar situation to you, unexplained infertility on paper we are both fine. First round of IVF we got 11 eggs, 7 matures and 0 fertilised and were told to try ICSI which we did and got 14 eggs, 9 mature and 0 fertilised. Totally heart-breaking and really at a loss with where to go next. Would love to hear how you are getting on and if anyone has any recommendations as there doesn't seem to be much out there on TFF xxx
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